In American democracy, citizens have the constitutional right to vote. Voting gives people the right to elect officials that are representative of their beliefs. And in elections, the majority chooses who will represent the nation. But what happens when the minority’s voice is heard over the majority’s voice?
In Dancing with the Stars, fans get to vote for the dance couple they want to see back in the coming weeks. However, when fans vote, sometimes the best dancers are eliminated. In season 25, Heather Morris and Simone Biles were eliminated from the show despite getting continuous high scores throughout the season. And, in a turn of events, front runner Normani ended the competition in third.
But why were these women voted off despite being the best? Apparently, America doesn’t like powerful and successful women. In fact, for the past three seasons, the winners have all been male celebrities. In the current season (#27), the past four celebrities that were eliminated have been women, even though three male contestants ended at the bottom of the leaderboard EVERY WEEK. The reason? These men have huge fans bases that keep them in the show.
Each viewer vote holds more weight than the judge’s votes. So, for instance, Joe Amabile has received 5s and 6s every week, yet made it further in the competition than Tinashe who scored 8s and 9s. AND IT IS ALL DUE TO THE BACHELOR NATION FAN BASE!!
When the minority carries more influence than the majority, there is a problem. ABC and Dancing with the Stars needs to fix their policies surrounding voting because the best dancers often get voted off. The will of the people should be irrelevant in the case of DWTS–or at least hold less weight–because that’s not what the show is about. And while it is important for the audience to be able to vote for the couples they like, it is unfair to the celebrities who deserve to be on the show. That is what DWTS is all about; celebrities, who are charismatic and talented, making massive improvements throughout the competition and winning the hearts of Americans.